


Fake Marriage

by NinesByDawn



Series: Nest Building [17]
Category: Teen Titans (Animated Series)
Genre: Established Relationship, F/M, Fake Marriage, Fluff, Slice of Life, Trolling
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-22
Updated: 2020-04-22
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:19:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23788459
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NinesByDawn/pseuds/NinesByDawn
Summary: RobRae Week 2020 Day 4 prompt.
Relationships: Dick Grayson/Raven
Series: Nest Building [17]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1655041
Comments: 4
Kudos: 39





	Fake Marriage

The main room had become a mess again, popcorn kernels and cookie crumbs littering the carpet in front of the large TV. Beast Boy was slumped over on the couch, his hand on his face as he mindlessly stared at the screen. Another rerun of a sitcom played on the TV, the canned laughter occasionally blaring through the speakers. The shapeshifter sporadically laughed along with the scripted moments, but he was starting to drift off into daydreaming.

Robin entered from the hallway, his nose in a thick file as he walked over to the kitchen area. Setting down the file on the counter, he glanced over at the couch and narrowed his eyes. Sighing, he walked over and peered over the top of the couch, unsurprisingly finding his teammate laying on his side.

“Beast Boy.”

He jumped up, then swiveled his head and saw Robin. “Oh! Hey,” he said, rubbing his head sheepishly.

“Clean up this mess,” Robin ordered, gesturing to the carpet and assortment of open snacks on the table in front of them.

“Now?” he whined. “Dude, they’re just getting to the part where he…”

“You’re not really watching, since you’re laying down. So you might as well clean this all up. And maybe go do something productive after you’re done.”

He snorted. “Dude, I did all my chores already. Lay off.”

“You can always get better. You could go train in the gym—get your actual body stronger. Go see if anyone else needs help with something. Read a book, maybe. You might learn something.”

“Read a book? Gee, I wonder who could be rubbing off on you,” Beast Boy drawled. He hopped up, going over to fetch a vacuum.

“If you’re gonna watch TV, at least watch something good,” Robin muttered, pointing the remote at the screen and turning it off.

“You know what?” Beast Boy said, as he returned to the couch with a vacuum. “Since you always wanna act like my dad and tell me to stop being lazy, I’ll just call you ‘Dad’ from now on.”

“What?”

“Yeah.” He put his hands on his hips, and grinned. “I’ll get this cleaned up real quick, Dad.” Robin stared at him for a moment, before shaking his head and going back over to the kitchen. As the whirring sound of the vacuum started up, Robin went and pulled out some beef jerky from the cabinet, biting on a piece as he flipped through the file. A thought briefly crossed his mind about what Beast Boy had decided to do, but he ignored it, figuring it was just another one of the jokes he would get tired of with no audience.

Beast Boy finished cleaning, and set everything in front of the TV back in place. “Sorry Dad, but I think I’m gonna eat some more first.”

“Beast Boy.”

“What, Dad?” he asked as he slid by him, opening the cabinet and finding his veggie straws.

“Stop calling me that.”

“Nah. Clearly you like that role anyways.” He laughed as he tossed a few straws in his mouth, munching on them eagerly.

“Whatever,” Robin sighed.

“Which makes me think,” Beast Boy continued, “Where’s Mom?”

“‘Mom’? Oh no…” Robin realized, facepalming. “Beast Boy, don’t do this. She’s gonna kill you…”

“It fits her too, doesn’t it?” he chuckled. “She’s always like ‘Wah, Beast Boy, do the dishes’, or ‘Get your feet off the table, you’re making it dirty for everyone else’. You two truly are birds of a feather.”

“How long do you plan on doing this?” Robin said exasperatedly.

“Who knows,” Beast Boy replied with a shrug. He bounded back over to the couch, and turned the TV on again. “I know I’m not your favorite son, Dad. But this is just who I am.”

“Tell me about it,” Robin muttered under his breath. Just then, the main door whooshed open and Raven walked through, holding a mug. Robin awkwardly glanced over at Beast Boy, then back at her. As she refilled her mug from the kettle, she looked sideways at him and gave him a small smile.

“Hey.”

“Uh, hey,” Robin said, scratching his head.

“Mom!” Beast Boy screeched. He leapt up from the couch and came over to them, putting his elbows on the counter. “How’s it going? Drinking your herbal tea like usual?”

Raven froze. She slowly turned her head towards him, her expression morphing gradually to one of confusion mixed with disgust. She then turned to look at Robin, who put his hands in the air, and nodded back at Beast Boy. The shapeshifter giggled uncontrollably.

“I’m…gonna pretend I didn’t hear that,” she muttered, and grabbed her mug, striding back to the hallway.

“Mom!” Beast Boy called after her. “You should really try some of my cooking at dinner tonight! I promise it’s gotten better!” Raven continued walking straight into the hallway, not bothering to look back while Robin shook his head again.

“Don’t push her, Beast Boy,” he warned. “Me, it’s whatever. But _you_ of all people should know better.”

“Who said I was gonna be the only one?” Beast Boy replied, laughing again. He grabbed his bag of snacks and left for the hallway via the same path. Robin stared after him.

“Wait, what?” he said to himself.

* * *

“But I do not understand why you wish to act as if our friends are our parents.”

“Just trust me, Star,” Beast Boy said giddily. Cyborg snickered, as the three of them were huddled in the hallway.

“You really think this will work?” Cyborg asked.

“Dude, you should’ve seen the _looks_ on their faces,” Beast Boy proclaimed. “Pure gold.”

“I’m in. Just don’t take it too far,” Cyborg said. “We can mess with them for a little bit, until they get tired of it.”

“Dude, since when has that ever happened?”

Cyborg and Starfire stared at him, then looked at each other, and decided not to bring up the numerous times they all had had to restrain the broody empath from skinning him alive.

“So we shall address our friends as ‘Mother’ and ‘Father’ from now on?” Starfire wondered, looking up in thought. “Some of your Earthling jokes are still most strange. On Tamaran, we never refer to others who are not our parents as—”

“Just roll with it, Star,” Beast Boy said, cutting her off. “It’ll be worth it when you see their reactions.”

“I shall try,” she promised.

* * *

The team sat around the table at dinner that night, Cyborg having cooked one of his classic big feasts and Beast Boy making his own vegan dishes for himself as usual. Robin stared suspiciously at Beast Boy for the first part of dinner. His new joke wasn’t that much of a big deal to him, but he did see a path for Beast Boy to get extremely irritating about it. Raven sensed the anxiety from him through the bond, but wasn’t sure where or what it was directed towards. It was louder than usual to her, but she figured he was always worked up about something anyways, and made a mental note to talk to him after dinner about it. Neither of them were prepared for just how elaborate the changeling had planned his gag to be.

“Dad, can you pass the potatoes?” Beast Boy asked innocently. Robin stared at him, then lifted the bowl and extended his arm out for Beast Boy to take it. He glanced over at Cyborg and Starfire to see their reactions, and was internally shocked to see that neither of them were expressing any surprise.

“So, Mom,” Cyborg said to Raven. “I just ordered brand new engine parts for the T-Car and they arrived this afternoon. Could you give me a hand sometime in the next few days?”

Raven set her fork down, and narrowed her eyes. “What did you just call me?”

“What?” Cyborg asked. “I know you’re busy, so I’ll buy you some nice flowers for Mother’s Day to make up for it. I won’t forget this time!”

“So you’re in on Beast Boy’s stupid act, too, huh?” she drawled. “You’re literally older than me. You can stop pretending this is funny just to make him happy.”

“Frien—Father,” Starfire said, addressing Robin. “Do you wish to go the fish with my brothers later tonight?”

“Alright, I see where this is going,” he said, as Beast Boy and Cyborg continued to troll Raven. “Sure thing, Star. Maybe we can see if Mom wants to play too.”

“That would be most wonderful!” Starfire replied, clapping her hands together.

“Can I please have another potato, Mom?” Beast Boy begged. “I’m eating all my veggies! Look!” He held up his plate for effect.

“Since when have you ever asked for permission to eat more?” Raven groused, glaring at him.

“Guess that means yes. Thanks Mom! I knew you were cool deep down,” Beast Boy said happily as he grabbed another potato from the bowl.

“Friends!” Starfire said, addressing them all. “My brothers! Father has agreed to spend tonight to play the card games with us!”

“Boo-yah!” Cyborg shouted. “Dad, I’m gonna whup your ass tonight!”

“We’ll see about that,” Robin said, grinning. Raven raised an eyebrow and turned to stare at him.

“Robin. What is—”

“Mom, you should play too!” Beast Boy interrupted. “More time as a family’s only for the better!”

“Yeah, Mom,” Robin said, lightly elbowing her a bit. A vein in her temple suddenly swelled, and she glared at him. Sighing loudly, she got up from the table, putting her dishes in the sink and walking briskly towards the hallway.

“Make sure you all clean up the table, kids,” Robin instructed, as he also got up.

“Is Mom okay?” Cyborg asked.

“I’m sure she’s fine,” Robin said with a smile. “She’s just…a little stressed. That’s all.”

“About what?” Starfire wondered.

“It’s grown-up stuff. Nothing too interesting for you kids,” he replied. “Just be good and do your chores, and I’ll be back to play cards, okay?” The three of them smiled at him and he gave them a thumbs up, before departing for the hallway.

Raven was waiting for him around the corner, her arms folded as she leaned her body against the wall. She stared at him, a frown still on her face as she approached.

“Hey, sorry for that,” he began as he walked up.

“Are you in on this stupid joke too?” she asked annoyedly. “As if they needed an excuse to be even more immature than they already are.”

“I had nothing to do with it, like I said,” he said. “It was all Beast Boy. He must’ve gotten the others in on it too.”

“So why are you acting just like them?”

“Just play along,” he said lowly. “Don’t start any drama. They’ll get tired of it in a day or two and move on.”

“A day or two?” she said exasperatedly.

“C’mon. It’s not that bad,” he said, smiling.

“It’s not. It’s just overwhelmingly stupid. Which is even worse,” she muttered.

“Hang in there, Rae,” Robin chuckled.

“I’ll try,” she grumbled, turning to leave for her room.

“You sure you don’t wanna join us for cards, _Mom_?”

Raven looked back at him and rolled her eyes, then continued walking away. Robin smiled again, and went the opposite direction back towards the main room. He did have to admit it was annoying and a little creepy at first, but he was starting to find it endearing in a way, perhaps due to the fact he was already the leader anyways.

* * *

Raven was reading on the couch the next morning after training, looking up every few minutes or so to glance around. Strange that Starfire wasn’t cooking something Tamaranian, or that the boys hadn’t taken over the couch to play video games again. Shrugging, her eyes shifted back to the page and she re-engrossed herself in the novel. It seemed it was one of those days everyone was off doing their own thing, which she didn’t mind at all.

Some time later, close to the early afternoon, her peace was finally interrupted as Beast Boy came over, sitting down in the middle of the couch and turning the TV on. She momentarily glanced at him as he kicked back, before her gaze shifted back to in front of her. The situation had become less ideal. She could always go back to her room, but that would probably make him even more annoying than usual about calling out her habits. Besides, she’d gotten enough practice tuning all the other noise out from the main room over the years.

“So, Mom,” Beast Boy said, as he started channel surfing. “Whatcha reading?”

“Don’t call me that, and stop pretending that you care.”

“Whatever, Mom,” he said, as he settled on a rerun of a sci-fi movie. Raven didn’t respond, choosing instead to focus even more on her book. Robin did have a point. His jokes and attitude did tend to wear himself out first if others let him do so.

Beast Boy looked over at her during the commercial break, and smirked. He’d grown more respecting of her boundaries over the years, but he just wouldn’t let his current obsession go.

“Mom, when’s Dad gonna be home? I haven’t seen him since this morning. I kinda hope he takes us out to the park tonight or something.”

Raven didn’t bother to acknowledge him.

“Mom,” Beast Boy whined, trying again.

Raven allowed him a brief glare of annoyance, before returning to her stoic state.

“Mom!” he said a little louder. “Did you hear me? Where’s Dad?” Raven finally lowered her book, then shot him an icy stare.

“Shut. The fuck. Up.”

“Fine,” he conceded, raising his hands. “Don’t wanna get on Mom’s pissy side.” He turned off the TV and got up, going over to the fridge for a snack. Raven rolled her eyes and sighed.

The main room stayed relatively empty throughout the afternoon, so Raven decided she would also get her meditation session in as well. She hovered near the window, deeply focused. The sessions had grown shorter and shorter as she gained more control over herself after her battle with her father, but it was still necessary to maintain a daily routine. The risk of losing control otherwise was too great. As she found herself floating in a black space once again, her thoughts started to blank out.

“Mother!”

Raven let out a low growl, and opened one eye. “What, Starfire?”

“I am deeply sorry for interrupting your meditation,” she said, floating next to her. “But I have a dire task that requires your assistance.”

“Which is?”

“I have come to ask if you could fix these,” Starfire said, holding up a pair of ripped jeans. “You are most skilled in the knitting, yes?”

Raven stared at her for a moment, before glancing at the jeans. “Starfire, these look like the kind that come ripped as a ‘style’ and are marked up way higher because of it.”

The alien held back a small laugh, but Raven noticed it and frowned. She always noticed even the smallest emotional changes. “Mother, I wish to…wear the pants that are not frayed.”

“Are you asking me this because you actually want me to fix them, or because you’re just playing into this game still?” Raven asked, sighing.

“I do not understand what you are…implying,” she said innocently. Raven let out another loud sigh. “But if you are unable to fix them, will you allow me to join you in the meditation?”

“Fine,” Raven grumbled, defeated.

“I am most delighted to spend quality time with you, Mother,” she said as she folded her legs into a lotus.

“Sure. I guess,” Raven muttered.

After enduring the same type of treatment from Cyborg as she helped him install some new parts in the T-Car, and begrudgingly accepting her new name during dinner when she couldn’t get out of it in front of everyone else, Raven finally got some truly serene time hanging out in Robin’s room in the evening. She somehow didn’t feel that inclined to read anymore, and instead mindlessly browsed news on his laptop as he fiddled with some more gadget designs.

“So where have you been today?”

“I got a workout in, went to meet with the police about one of their cases, and then went and bought some parts,” he replied, opening and closing a Birdarang. “Why?”

“Lucky you,” she muttered. “They haven’t had a chance to act like eight year olds to you that much yet.”

“Yeah, well, I heard you aren’t doing a very good job playing along anyways,” Robin chuckled.

“Clearly you’re enjoying this little charade. Why don’t _you_ stay here more often and I’ll go out then?”

“Have some fun with it,” Robin suggested, still laughing a bit. “You can put Beast Boy in timeout if you want. Just be patient. It’s only been a day.”

“This was _much_ harder than I anticipated,” she mused, pursing her lips. Robin set his gadgets down, then sat down next to her and put his arm around her shoulder.

“I’ll stay here tomorrow. I can work on paperwork and stuff from here. I’ll be your emotional support,” he said, placing a light kiss on her cheek.

“Hmm. All I can say is, they’d better find it more amusing to bother you than me.”

“Don’t count on that,” Robin said with a grin.

* * *

The two birds spent the next afternoon at home, Raven continuing to opt to meditate in the common area, knowing at least Robin was nearby. He didn’t mind working on paperwork in a more open area, and somehow being near her while she was meditating calmed him as well. The clicking of the laptop keys was the only sound in the large space for a little bit, before the door slid open and Cyborg and Beast Boy entered with much ruckus.

“Dude, don’t get yourself killed so easily this time and maybe we’ll win this Battle Royale.”

“Maybe you should spend more time upgrading your character and less time buying clothes!” Cyborg retorted.

“Shh!” Robin hissed as they made their way over to the couch. “Mom’s meditating.” Raven’s back was facing them, but she opened an eye in annoyance for a brief moment.

“My bad, Mom,” Cyborg whispered, and backed away a bit. Beast Boy followed suit. “Let’s go get some snacks for now while we wait for her to finish.” Robin chuckled as they still managed to make noticeable noise munching in the kitchen, but it didn’t seem to affect Raven. She finished after another 20 or so minutes, joining Robin on the couch.

“All right!” Beast Boy exclaimed. “Let’s get online!” The two of them snatched up the controllers and quickly got into it, while Raven got comfortable in her position resting her head on Robin’s shoulder, and opened up another book.

“Do you wanna go somewhere else?” she asked him. “I suspect it’s going to get loud here soon…”

“I’m good,” he replied. “I think we’ll be needed. To reinforce a little order,” he added with a wink. Raven snorted, but there was a hint of amusement this time as opposed to the annoyance from yesterday. Beast Boy and Cyborg continued to play, their whoops of joy and roars of frustration getting louder as the game went on. Finally, Cyborg’s character was blasted into the air by a grenade and he slammed the controller on the floor.

“Way to go, dude,” Beast Boy remarked. “Even I could’ve seen that coming! We’re never gonna get above 8th place on one of these.”

“If you’re so good, then why are you always the first one to die?” Cyborg asked, glaring at him.

“Kids!” Robin called, craning his head over Raven’s to look at them. “Keep it down and don’t start any fights. I’m trying to get work done over here.”

“Alright, Dad,” Cyborg said. “But do you have to cuddle Mom right next to us while you work? That’s kind of gross.”

“Just keep playing your game, Cyborg,” Raven said softly. She rested her head on Robin’s chest, surprising him a little. “Your father finds it…easier to concentrate when I’m around.” Robin’s cheeks flushed just the tiniest bit, but he managed to crack a small smile in agreement.

“I’m sure he does,” Beast Boy snickered.

“I heard that.”

Beast Boy stared at her, meeting her neutral expression, and chuckled nervously. They went back to playing, and Raven turned her head to meet Robin’s eyes, and gave him a wink. Robin grinned. They stayed like that, together but not all over each other, as Cyborg and Beast Boy started battling each other.

“Our family is all here!” The voice came from behind them, and the two birds turned to look at her. Starfire floated in front of them, and held her hands together in delight. “Mother! Father! You look so cute!”

“Good to see you too, Star,” Robin said. Starfire took a seat next to Raven, and began to watch the ongoing action on the screen. Robin sighed and shut his laptop, deciding the noise wasn’t going to improve.

“You know,” Raven began, “We could go somewhere else. But…”

“But?” he asked.

“I have a feeling we’ll be needed soon,” she said, gesturing to the scene and chuckling a little. “Besides, don’t tell me you don’t want to get some quality _father-son_ time in playing video games.”

“I’ll keep ‘em in check,” Robin said with a laugh. They watched as the game grew more intense, and Cyborg finally killed Beast Boy’s character.

“Sucks to suck, little man!” Cyborg crooned.

“You cheated again!” Beast Boy yelled, throwing his controller on the ground.

“Friends!” Starfire pleaded, trying to calm them both down.

“Man, I don’t even need you in co-op,” Cyborg said, smirking. “I bet I can make it all the way to the top in Battle Royale without you holding me back.”

“You just camp all day! Come out and fight like a real man!” He slapped the controller out of Cyborg’s hands, and their argument grew louder, drowning out Starfire’s words.

“Beast Boy. Cyborg,” Raven said coldly. They quieted down after a moment, then turned to look at her. “Timeout. Both of you. _Now_.”

Robin turned away from them, struggling to suppress his laughter, while they stared at her in shock.

“That’s not fair!” Beast Boy blurted. “ _He_ started it!”

“He made it worse!” Cyborg said, pointing at him.

“Both of you are misbehaving. So I want you each to sit in opposite corners where I can see you, for 20 minutes. And think about what you can do better next time,” she said. The two of them stared at each other, both deliberating whether they wanted to continue keeping the act up. Finally, Cyborg shrugged, and trudged over to the window, while Beast Boy took up the opposite corner, scowling and hugging his legs.

“I wish to play the Smash, but Beast Boy and Cyborg have both behaved badly,” Starfire said sadly.

“There’s still someone left,” Raven said, gesturing to Robin.

“For sure,” he agreed, getting up and sitting down in the center of the couch.

“That would be most wonderful, Father,” Starfire said, smiling. The two of them fired up the game, while Raven allowed herself a small smile at the scene.

* * *

“This looks like quite an extensive list,” Raven said, peering over at the piece of paper in Robin’s hands.

“We do go through a lot of food,” Robin agreed, looking over all the items one more time as they walked down the hallway. “We don’t have anything about to expire that’s left in the fridge, do we?”

“If we do, it’s probably tofu.”

“So no.” He smiled as they got in the elevator and he pressed the button down to the garage.

“Star wants to try that new habanero mustard they just came out with,” Raven commented. “So make sure you get the largest possible bottle of it.”

“It’s only going to come in a tiny bottle, and cost three times as much as one of those big containers of the regular kind,” Robin sighed. “But it’s okay.” The two birds entered the garage, Robin twirling the keys to the car in his fingers.

“Well, in any case, that’s the extent of the can’t forget items that I can think of.”

“Anything I can pick up for you, _honey_?” Robin asked with a grin.

“Please don’t call me that,” Raven said, rolling her eyes. “There’s nothing wrong with ‘Mom’. And no, I think I’m set.”

“Sounds good to me, Mom,” he said, as he got in the car. Raven stood next to the door, and he rolled down the window, gazing at her. “You sure you don’t wanna come? I could use a hand with everything.”

“I’m sure you’ll be in and out fairly quick,” she said. “Besides…” She gestured back to the door, and gave a wry smile. “Someone’s gotta watch over the kids.”


End file.
